Cass County

POVERTY BY AGE

While they say little about economic ups and downs in the decade between
Censuses, income and poverty data provide us with economic "snapshots" of
an area at the time of enumeration that can in turn be compared with
economic data gathered from earlier Censuses. Poverty status, as measured in this chart, is determined by Poverty Thresholds, which take into account a number of factors,
including income
and family size
and structure.
For example, the 2000 Poverty Threshold for a family of four in the continental United States with two related children was 17,463. However, Poverty Thresholds are misleading because they do not provide an accurate picture of what a “poor” family’s life is like. According to the National Center for Children in poverty, most families of four would have to make twice
their assigned Poverty Threshold in order to provide their children with basic necessities, such as housing, food, and health care.

Poverty by Age, 1990 and 2000

1990

2000

Number

Percent

Number

Percent

Total Population*

37,306

100.00%

39,708

100.00%

In Poverty

3,860

10.35%

3,007

7.57%

Not in Poverty

33,446

89.65%

36,701

92.43%

11 Years and Under

6,469

17.34%

6,639

16.72%

In Poverty

953

2.55%

788

1.98%

Not in Poverty

5,516

14.79%

5,851

14.74%

12 to 17 Years

3,649

9.78%

3,487

8.78%

In Poverty

398

1.07%

251

0.63%

Not in Poverty

3,251

8.71%

3,236

8.15%

18 to 64 Years

21,635

57.99%

23,918

60.23%

In Poverty

2,047

5.49%

1,667

4.20%

Not in Poverty

19,588

52.51%

22,251

56.04%

65 Years and Above

5,553

14.89%

5,664

14.26%

In Poverty

462

1.24%

301

0.76%

Not in Poverty

5,091

13.65%

5,363

13.51%

* The total population is the population for which poverty status is determined. Therefore, the total in this table should not be expected to match the total population in the population growth topic.